New Mac Game Store App Is Surprisingly Steam-Like

Today, the appropriately named Mac Game Store released a Mac app that looks a lot like a simliar service you may have heard of, Valve’s Steam. While Steam began as a matchmaking and leader board service that soon morphed into the premier PC and Mac game digital distribution juggernaut it is today, the Mac Game Store will only sell downloadable Mac games, naturally.

The app looks similar to Valve’s offering, but tailors the experience to the Mac gamer, with a high-potential feature called the Game Compatibility Checker, which compares your Mac’s specs to the games you want to run on it in real time. Steam has no such feature, though some PC games have web-based tools that do the same thing. This is the first time I’ve heard of a Mac game compatibility checker, though.

The Mac Game Store has Mac versions of several high-profile games ready for purchase and download, including titles like Assassin’s Creed II, Batman: Arkham Asylum, and Deus Ex: Human Revolution. The new Mac app will help users discover new games for the Mac, as well, with a Top 100 list, Special deals, and a Pre-Order list of Mac games that are soon to come out.

The service will help keep your Mac game list updated, and you can delete games when you no longer want them taking up space on your hard drive; simply download them again via the service’s cloud-based digital rights system. There’s even a community forum section of the app, letting you chat with other Mac gamers, take part in Polls, and just connect with the Mac gaming community.